David Cameron has vowed to fight to keep the Falklands in the face of mounting Argentinian rhetoric over the islands’ future.

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The Prime Minister insisted British resolve was “extremely strong” and pointed out that jets and troops are stationed there.

It comes as Argentinian president Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner accused Britain of colonialism and demanded their handover.

In an open letter published as an advert in the Guardian she said Argentina was forcibly stripped of the Malvinas — the |Argentinian name for the islands — in “a blatant exercise of 19th-century colonialism”.

Mr Cameron insisted that Britain would defend the islands and said the UK had still one of the top five defence budgets in the world despite the raft of recent cuts to the armed forces.

He told the BBC yesterday: “I get regular reports on this entire issue because I want to know that our defences are strong, our |resolve is extremely strong.”

Asked if Britain would fight to keep the islands, he replied: “Of course we would and we have strong defences in place on the Falkland Islands, that is absolutely key, that we have fast jets |stationed there, we have troops stationed on the Falklands.”

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